Post by Finnish Gas on Jun 24, 2014 9:32:34 GMT
BRISTOL ROVERS BLOG: G is for Gas - The shock of the new
By The Bristol Post | Posted: June 24, 2014
BrownieII
It often feels as though the quality, and style, of football in the Conference is unfairly maligned.
One serious problem with believing that largely out-of-date view is that it can lead clubs into a false sense of security, and a distinct lack of humility; both of which will almost guarantee a shock from the division of hell.
We have been told by Conference fans to generally expect good quality, fast, and raw, attacking football. Our club ought to be listening to that in order to be prepared for the shock of the new. Thankfully we have a manager who, although never having a chance to manage in the Conference (as he came to us just after he got Salisbury promoted into it), did have three very successful years as their manager in the two tiers immediately below the Conference, and therefore certainly knows the sphere of football we are now in.
Evidence suggests that the teams that make it out of the Conference nearly always do well in the Football League, so surely they must have plenty of quality in them. Only two teams go up, so it’s even more competitive than League Two (the only league where four teams go up), and you truly do need the perfect season to get the one automatic promotion slot. Indeed in the last ten seasons exasperated Conference runners up have finished with a staggering average of 86 points. Wrexham once only came second despite racking up 98 points and a goal difference of +52. To add insult to injury they were then ruthlessly beaten in the play-off semi-final.
If you’re still not convinced about the quality of the league, especially the fully professional clubs, take a look at the teams that have escaped from the Conference, and see where they are today.
Of the last ten teams to be promoted (barring last season as it‘s too early to tell), only one has since been relegated back to non-league (Torquay), and even they enjoyed two play-off slots in their four seasons in League Two. That was more than Rovers achieved in nine seasons in League Two.
Crawley and Stevenage have been the two high flyers of course, coming from no league history at all and both gaining back-to-back promotions from the Conference, through League Two without stopping, and into League One. Crawley have since finished 10th and 15th in League One. Stevenage were even more successful at the start, finishing sixth in their first League One season, but then struggled for the next two, finishing 18th and then bottom. Fleetwood haven’t been far behind as after saying goodbye to the Conference in 2012 they finished 13th and 4th in League Two, and have just been promoted again via the play-offs.
Oxford have been consistently, if rather laboriously, strong (12th, ninth, ninth & eighth) and Burton have been a real slow burning sensation (13th, 19th & 17th, but then fourth & sixth). York City are now on a roll; a difficult first season in 17th, but a late play-off slot last season via seventh position. Mansfield and Newport rode some patchy form last season to finish their inaugural seasons back in the league 11th and 14th respectively. Only the phoenix from the flames (AFC Wimbledon) has consistently struggled, and also waned, finishing 16th, 20th & 20th.
If we are to stand a chance of exiting this league we need to retain the few decent players we have left, unless their salary is completely engorged for this level. With Lee Brown signing a new contract last week we received the first fragment of genuinely excellent news about our existing players. I very much rate Brown and when I think of the attributes I want in a player he ticks all the boxes, including my slightly eccentric one about players not posting fatuous drivel on twitter or Facebook.
It is also heartening to see that Darrell Clarke has principles when dealing with players, and as he believes that all players are replaceable at this level, Rovers won’t be offering excessive wages to anyone. New contracts will also be heavily performance related, which is something I’ve been banging on about for ages.
Despite the bigger issues of pessimism surrounding the abysmal manner in which Rovers is run from up on high, and the tardy resolution of the Wycombe affair, I bet we have all still pencilled Saturday, August 9 in our diaries for the first game of the Conference season. No matter what gets thrown at us, football fans still want to go and watch their team. Every season, nay, every match, we still go with equal parts of expectation and trepidation. It’s like an inexplicable joie de vivre cocktail. Every time I go to the match I think it will be better than before. A few minutes after kick-off I realise it may not be, but if we didn’t have that hope in our hearts I’m sure none of us would ever get off the sofa.
Martin Bull became a Gashead in 1989 and immediately fell in love with Twerton Park. In 2006 he wrote, photographed and published the first independent book about the artist Banksy. Having been exiled for much of his life, away games have always been special for him; so much so that he is asking for contributions from fellow Rovers fans to a new book he is compiling. To contribute go to: www.awaythegas.org.uk
Read more at www.bristolpost.co.uk/BRISTOL-ROVERS-BLOG-G-Gas-shock-new/story-21278573-detail/story.html
By The Bristol Post | Posted: June 24, 2014
BrownieII
It often feels as though the quality, and style, of football in the Conference is unfairly maligned.
One serious problem with believing that largely out-of-date view is that it can lead clubs into a false sense of security, and a distinct lack of humility; both of which will almost guarantee a shock from the division of hell.
We have been told by Conference fans to generally expect good quality, fast, and raw, attacking football. Our club ought to be listening to that in order to be prepared for the shock of the new. Thankfully we have a manager who, although never having a chance to manage in the Conference (as he came to us just after he got Salisbury promoted into it), did have three very successful years as their manager in the two tiers immediately below the Conference, and therefore certainly knows the sphere of football we are now in.
Evidence suggests that the teams that make it out of the Conference nearly always do well in the Football League, so surely they must have plenty of quality in them. Only two teams go up, so it’s even more competitive than League Two (the only league where four teams go up), and you truly do need the perfect season to get the one automatic promotion slot. Indeed in the last ten seasons exasperated Conference runners up have finished with a staggering average of 86 points. Wrexham once only came second despite racking up 98 points and a goal difference of +52. To add insult to injury they were then ruthlessly beaten in the play-off semi-final.
If you’re still not convinced about the quality of the league, especially the fully professional clubs, take a look at the teams that have escaped from the Conference, and see where they are today.
Of the last ten teams to be promoted (barring last season as it‘s too early to tell), only one has since been relegated back to non-league (Torquay), and even they enjoyed two play-off slots in their four seasons in League Two. That was more than Rovers achieved in nine seasons in League Two.
Crawley and Stevenage have been the two high flyers of course, coming from no league history at all and both gaining back-to-back promotions from the Conference, through League Two without stopping, and into League One. Crawley have since finished 10th and 15th in League One. Stevenage were even more successful at the start, finishing sixth in their first League One season, but then struggled for the next two, finishing 18th and then bottom. Fleetwood haven’t been far behind as after saying goodbye to the Conference in 2012 they finished 13th and 4th in League Two, and have just been promoted again via the play-offs.
Oxford have been consistently, if rather laboriously, strong (12th, ninth, ninth & eighth) and Burton have been a real slow burning sensation (13th, 19th & 17th, but then fourth & sixth). York City are now on a roll; a difficult first season in 17th, but a late play-off slot last season via seventh position. Mansfield and Newport rode some patchy form last season to finish their inaugural seasons back in the league 11th and 14th respectively. Only the phoenix from the flames (AFC Wimbledon) has consistently struggled, and also waned, finishing 16th, 20th & 20th.
If we are to stand a chance of exiting this league we need to retain the few decent players we have left, unless their salary is completely engorged for this level. With Lee Brown signing a new contract last week we received the first fragment of genuinely excellent news about our existing players. I very much rate Brown and when I think of the attributes I want in a player he ticks all the boxes, including my slightly eccentric one about players not posting fatuous drivel on twitter or Facebook.
It is also heartening to see that Darrell Clarke has principles when dealing with players, and as he believes that all players are replaceable at this level, Rovers won’t be offering excessive wages to anyone. New contracts will also be heavily performance related, which is something I’ve been banging on about for ages.
Despite the bigger issues of pessimism surrounding the abysmal manner in which Rovers is run from up on high, and the tardy resolution of the Wycombe affair, I bet we have all still pencilled Saturday, August 9 in our diaries for the first game of the Conference season. No matter what gets thrown at us, football fans still want to go and watch their team. Every season, nay, every match, we still go with equal parts of expectation and trepidation. It’s like an inexplicable joie de vivre cocktail. Every time I go to the match I think it will be better than before. A few minutes after kick-off I realise it may not be, but if we didn’t have that hope in our hearts I’m sure none of us would ever get off the sofa.
Martin Bull became a Gashead in 1989 and immediately fell in love with Twerton Park. In 2006 he wrote, photographed and published the first independent book about the artist Banksy. Having been exiled for much of his life, away games have always been special for him; so much so that he is asking for contributions from fellow Rovers fans to a new book he is compiling. To contribute go to: www.awaythegas.org.uk
Read more at www.bristolpost.co.uk/BRISTOL-ROVERS-BLOG-G-Gas-shock-new/story-21278573-detail/story.html
